The trend in recent and upcoming family movies shows the return of favorites in a three-dimensional format. With movies such as Star Wars and Titanic returning to the big screen, AMC and its counterparts look for ticket sales from older fans and younger, first-time viewers.

Disney classic Beauty and the Beast premiered on January 13, kicking off this year’s 3D schedule. Though the cartoon did not feature the action scenes that make the most of three-dimensional viewing, it nonetheless provided entertainment for all age groups.

“It was more of a pop-out book than a true 3D movie, but the fun of it was seeing it with my friends and as a grown-up. It captured the essence of our childhood,” says senior Josie Little, who watched the movie as a bonding trip with her friends.

Little thinks that the beginning of the movie, in which the flowers bloom at the beginning of spring, and the end, the famous yellow-dress ballroom scene, best took advantage of the 3D technology. But she says that the movie was “very cute” overall.

Another cartoon classic, albeit a younger one, will be released in 3D later in the year. Disney/Pixar’s Finding Nemo comes to theaters on September 14, and fans look forward to seeing certain scenes pop out, including Marlin and Dory’s sea turtle adventure in the ocean current.

Earlier this month, the first (or fourth, depending on how you look at it) installment in the Star Wars series reappeared in theaters. Star Wars: Episode I–The Phantom Menace came to the silver screen once more, wowing viewings with its actions scenes that seemed to nearly touch audience members. Ben Kendrick of Screen Rant believes that, even without the three-dimensional features, just seeing this great franchise once more is enough to dish out the extra dollars.

“Anyone who is interested with the idea of viewing Episode 1 in a full-fledged theater experience again (regardless of the 3D visuals) will likely enjoy themselves – and can count the 3D podracing as a bonus,” he says in his review.

The final big-name film to return to theaters is the beloved epic romance Titanic. Though this movie does not feature the action scenes that would entice fans of 3D to flock to the theaters, fans of the tale of Jack Dawson and Rose DeWitt Bukater will undoubtedly purchase tickets to see one of the greatest love stories ever told.

Senior Cristina Gomez says, “I’m not as excited about the 3D aspect as I am about seeing my favorite movie of all time in theaters, since we were too young to see it when it first premiered.”

Many people believe that the reason behind the second-go-rounds of these films is to simply make more money on movies that have proven success. Of course, the big fans of the movie are the targets of the re-release, but these fans probably own the film on DVD if they love it so much. Titanic-crazed Americans would be wiser to save their $14 and watch the movie at home. Better yet, if they do not already own it, they can probably purchase the DVD for that $14 and view it as many times as they want, whenever they choose.

Additionally, some three-dimensional movies have no purpose to their 3D nature. For instance, the past influx of concert movies–The Jonas Brothers, Miley Cyrus, and Justin Bieber, to name a few–do little to take advantage of the fun graphics offered by this technology. When I left the Never Say Never concert experience, I could name the feature’s exciting 3D scenes on one finger. Instead of memories of technology that blew me away, the only momentos from the film that I had were a useless pair of plastic glasses and an empty pocket.

So if you have a few extra dollars and are dying to see your favorite movies in a new light, then feel free to head to AMC and watch those films. However, do not simply go to see how the three-dimensional technology has enhanced the viewing experience because it probably did very little. And besides, who wants to see a ship sink in 3D? Certainly not me.